COLUMBIA — A plan outlining major projects and improvements for Columbia
Regional Airport will go before the Columbia City Council on Monday evening.
The Airport Master Plan proposes $64 million worth of projects over the next 20
years and comes during the airport's busiest year in recent memory.

The plan calls for major runway reconstruction, runway extension, the purchase
of land adjacent to the airport and improvements to the main terminal and
facilities.

The master plan says the airport’s highest priority is the reconstruction and
extension of the crosswind runway, which is used by smaller planes when
prevailing winds blow perpendicular to the main runway.

According to the master plan, the entire asphalt runway is in
"poor" condition and requires complete reconstruction. The plan also
calls for extending the southeast end of the crosswind runway by 5,000 feet to
meet line-of-sight requirements.

After work on the crosswind runway is done, the main runway also would be
extended to accommodate larger aircraft. Although the main runway would be
closed during the extension work, the plan says that neither commercial nor
general aviation service would be interrupted.

Airport Manager Kathy Frerking said the Federal Aviation Administration, or
FAA, provides entitlement money for airport projects, but that money is
contingent on the existence of a master plan.

"With the master plan in place we hope to start all of this in the next
three to five years," Frerking said.

If the plan is adopted by the City Council, the airport can begin applying for
money to pay for runway work.

The master plan
estimates the total cost for runway improvements to be a little less than $40 million. Of that
amount, the FAA is estimated to provide around $34 million, the Missouri Department
of Transportation $3.4 million and the City of Columbia around $2.2 million.

In addition to runway
improvements, the plan calls for the eventual expansion of parking lots, the
construction of a new emergency services building, hangar expansion and
improvements to terminal facilities. The runway improvements, however, are
listed as the highest priority.

This year has been the
airport’s busiest for commercial air travel in recent history, with more
than 18,000 departing commercial air passengers through September. That puts
the airport on pace to pass 24,000 passengers by the end of the year, which
would make it the busiest year since 2002.

"We're thrilled," Frerking said, adding that Mesaba Air’s
connection to Memphis has made all the difference. "Having connections to
a hub is very beneficial."

Mesaba, now operated by
Delta, began service in August 2008 and provides 20 round-trip flights a week
between Columbia and Memphis. Mesaba replaced Air Midwest as the
airport's only commercial carrier, which discontinued service to Columbia in
June 2008.

John Riddick is a private pilot and has served on the Airport Advisory Board
for the past year. He agreed that Memphis has been a good destination for
Columbia service.

"I think the concept of flying to Kansas City or St. Louis wasn't a
good business choice," Riddick said, adding that Air Midwest’s delays and
inconsistencies in service negated the convenience of flying out of Columbia.

Frerking said Mesaba has also been more dependable than Air Midwest.

"Reliability is key,” Frerking said. “We knew that all along, but this is
proving it."

In 2007 Air Midwest scaled back service and logged fewer than 10,000 departing
passengers, which put the airport in danger of losing its essential air service
designation and the accompanying federal subsidy of about $1 million per year.
The subsidy is used for airport operations and improvements.

Mesaba provides service under a two-year essential air service contract. The
contract ensures that in addition to passenger fares, the carrier receives a
U.S. Department of Transportation subsidy of $1,083 per flight. At 20 round-trip flights a week,
the subsidy comes to more than $2 million per year. Frerking said flights on Mesaba’s Columbia-Memphis
route have averaged around 75 percent of capacity.

It appears that what's good for the airline is also good for passengers in
mid-Missouri.

MU sophomore Megan May was waiting for a flight Friday afternoon. She was on
her way home to Milwaukee and said that the convenience of flying out of
Columbia rather than Kansas City or St. Louis outweighed the additional cost.

"I just got out of class so I wouldn't be able to get home until late.
This way I also get back in time for class on Monday," May said.

Drew Leslie agreed. He
teaches at MU’s School of Music and was waiting for the same flight Friday
afternoon on his way to Austin, Texas. He said convenience is worth the added
cost. "For me it's a convenience thing. If it's convenient, I'd
rather pay a little bit more. Plus, there's free parking."

As for the facilities, he said Columbia Regional Airport leaves some things
to be desired.

"It would be nice if there was a newsstand or a restaurant,” he said.
“There is a restaurant, but it closes at like 2:30.”

Frerking said that she would like to see another carrier come in and expand
service to other cities such as Chicago or Dallas, but rising fuel costs and a
troubled economy make that difficult.

"It's getting harder and harder for airports to attract service because
carriers are putting that business where they know they can get the larger numbers,"
she said.

Still, she hopes improvements to the airport will help expand service.

The airport master plan proposes $64 million in improvements over the next 20
years but is intended to be a working document. It's unlikely that all of the projects in the plan would
be carried out in the next 20 years. The master plan is intended to provide
guidance and detailed analysis for projects that might ultimately require
federal funding.

The FAA suggests
airports produce an updated master plan every seven to 10 years.

Of $64 million in total proposed projects, the plan estimates the city would
be responsible for $16 million. Grants from the FAA would provide $41.4 million
and grants from the Missouri Department of Transportation $6.3 million.

The council will hear public testimony on the final draft of the airport
master plan Monday night before voting on whether to adopt the document.